Book store at Northgate closed

Northgate Books gets new owner, shuts down: Northgate Books, the independent book store that opened in the old Waldenbooks space at Northgate Mall, has closed.
The mall’s management sold off the book inventory in cash-only sales on Saturday and Sunday.
Allison Savicz, a spokeswoman for the mall, said there may be another sale held after the holidays for remaining inventory.
Savicz said the store was bought by a Raleigh resident who owned Jeannie’s Book Shoppe in Durham, another used book store at 3600 N. Duke St., Suite 23.
That store is also no longer in business, according the store’s website.
Savicz said the new owner was in the store for a few weeks, was re-organizing, but then had an injury, and could not manage the business.
“She’s elderly, and she just couldn’t manage it,” she said. “It was really a personal thing,” she also said. “She just couldn’t take it all on.”
Savicz said the sales were cash-only, with no exceptions. She suggested those with store credit go to the other location, but that store is closed, according to the website http://www.jeanniesbookshoppe.com/.

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Stay & Play Snack Café to open downtown: As a stay-at-home mom with two young children, Durham resident Emily McCall said she knows about the “challenges of entertaining little ones in places designed for grown-ups.”
That’s why McCall is planning to open Stay & Play Snack Café in downtown Durham in mid-January. She wants to create a space that’s appealing for parents, as well as for their children. She’s planning to have seating in the snack café for parents, as well as play areas with toys for children.
“Just kind of imagine your regular coffee shop atmosphere,” McCall said. “Take out a third, to half, of the seats, and replace those with little play areas.”
The plan is to charge a small admission fee per child that would be $5 or less. Adults would be free to enter. She’s also planning to sell drinks such as espresso, coffee, tea, as well as snacks such as muffins and pastries for adults, and snack foods for children such as crackers, vegetables, and fruit that would be served in muffin tins.
“It’s kind of a snack-y place,” she said.
McCall said she’s also in the process of coordinating with instructors to line up classes and other programs for children, such as fitness classes that both parents and their children could attend, or story time.
She’s signed lease for an approximately 1,400-square-foot space downtown at 405-A E. Chapel Hill St. The space previously housed the artisanal shop Reliable Cheese.
She raised $17,000 through the donation website Kickstarter, which she said will cover most of the cost of renovations to the space. She said she’s waiting on the permits required for the interior construction.
“I just feel like it’s something our community needs,” he said. “There are so many families; there really isn’t a place for them to go.”

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No Lime Fresh on Ninth: Lime Fresh Mexican Grill officials had announced that a location for the chain was coming to Ninth Street, but that’s not the case, according to an official with the joint venture that owns buildings on the western side of the street.
Chris Widmayer, vice president at Regency Centers, a company that is part of a joint venture that has bought and is renovating existing retail buildings on Ninth, has said there is no deal with Lime Fresh Mexican Grill.
“They made a premature announcement, and another tenant is going to be going into that space,” Widmayer said of the space at 703-A Ninth St. The space is next to The Duck Shop, the store that sells Duke University apparel.
Widmayer did confirm that the Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches location on Ninth Street will be moving into the freestanding building at 701 Ninth St. that previously housed Specs Eye Care. Specs moved to a space at 8202 Renaissance Parkway in Durham.
Work on the buildings at 701, 703 and 705 Ninth Street is expected to be complete before March 1, he said, and other work, including the renovation of the shell of the former George’s Garage building, is expected to be done by next summer.
“It is proceeding as planned,” Widmayer said. “We’re excited about it, we’re very happy to be a part of the Ninth Street community, and we look forward to making tenant announcements as they’re finalized.”

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